Newsletter
Biden too old for cannabis reform, challenger says (Newsletter: December 27, 2023)
FL legalization petition arrests; GOP congressman backs rescheduling; Ukraine medical marijuana bill delayed; Record ME sales
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), a 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, suggested that President Joe Biden is simply too old to grasp the need to legalize marijuana.
- “I think it’s generational. “People in their 80s do not see things, have not lived things, have not experienced things that younger generations have.”
Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-IN) expressed concerns about the potential impact of marijuana legalization on young people but said he supports rescheduling it in order to increase research.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement arrested two people who are accused of falsifying signatures on a proposed 2024 marijuana legalization ballot initiative that’s currently before the state Supreme Court.
A medical cannabis bill that was approved by Ukrainian lawmakers last week is delayed from being signed into law by President Volodymyr Zelensky amid a challenge from an opposition party led by a former prime minister.
The Maine Office of Cannabis Policy reports that the state set an adult-use marijuana sales record in 2023. The nearly $200 million worth of legal cannabis products sold through November is already $40 million higher than the total for all of 2022.
Oregon Measure 110 Oversight and Accountability Council member Morgan Godvin authored an op-ed arguing that overturning the voter-approved drug decriminalization law would strain police and increase overdoses.
/ FEDERAL
Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Patty Murray (D-WA) called on the federal government to stop applying severe consequences on immigrants who work in the marijuana industry.
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) tweeted, “This Christmas, Colorado’s making a list – and checking it twice! Here’s my wish list: …🎁 Federal marijuana reform…What’s on yours?”
Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and four cosponsors filed a resolution that notes that “the United States-backed drug war, along with economic displacement attributable in part to United States-sponsored free trade agreements, resulted in another major wave of migration from Central America and Mexico during the first two decades of the 2000s.”
/ STATES
Ohio’s lieutenant governor criticized the House of Representatives for not passing legislation to amend the voter-approved marijuana legalization law before adjourning for the year.
Wisconsin’s Assembly speaker said that “we know from our Democratic colleagues that unless we do full recreational marijuana, you’re not going to be able to count on anything” to get a more limited medical cannabis bill passed.
Illinois regulators filed proposed changes to hemp rules.
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/ LOCAL
New York City’s mayor spoke about the need to “attack” unlicensed marijuana businesses.
The Siskiyou County, California sheriff claimed that state laws block him from addressing illegal cannabis cultivation operations.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A review suggested that “cannabinoids can be used to address some side effects of cancer and to limit the growth of tumors, though a lack of supporting clinical trials presents a challenge for use on actual patients.”
A review concluded that “the use of psychedelics to treat alcohol use disorder is promising, but the weaknesses in the literature base preclude making definitive statements about its value.”
/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS
The Delaware Cannabis Advocacy Network held a “Joints for Junk” event at which activists handed out marijuana pre-rolls at the start of a trash clean up.
/ BUSINESS
MedMen Enterprises Inc. provided an update on its ability to file required financial statements.
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